Dispenser for rolled paper and paper roll therefor



P 29, 1964 R. R; VENSEL 3,150,808

AND P PER ROLL. EREFOR I i I i United States Patent Filed Dec. 5, 1960, Ser. No. 73,725 1 Claim. (Cl. 225-106) This invention relates to the dispensing of paper and paper rolls for use therewith, and is especially applicable to toilet paper dispensing and toilet paper rolls.

One common way of dispensing toilet paper is to prepare it in the form of a long strip of connected sheets wound into rolls upon a cardboard core. This core not only adds to the cost of the rolls, but adds to the shipping cost. The paper is dispensed from some kind of a wall fixture which may not always be located in a conveniently accessible place, and requires some kind of a rotatable mandrel that passes through the core, and which must be removed to dispose of an empty cardboard core and the substitution of a fresh roll. The unwinding of the spool and the rotation of the mandrel is often accompanied by noise which may be noticeable in adjoining rooms with a certain amount of embarrassment.

According to the present invention there is provided a dispenser in the form of an upright stand that may be moved about, and wherein the paper is unwound from the center of the roll instead of from the periphery of the roll, and no cardboard core is necessary. It is unnecessary for the roll to turn, so that no mandrel is necessary and no noise is produced by the removal of the paper.

Also, according to this invention, it is proposed to impart rigidity to the rolls of paper to preserve their form as the roll is exhausted from the center outwardly by sizing or gluing the last few convolutions at the exterior of the roll, whereby the periphery of the roll is sufficiently stiff and all of the usable paper in the roll can be pulled away while the unusable exterior will retain the roll in the holder.

The invention further provides a dispenser of unique construction which will accommodate two or more rolls whereby it is unnecessary for the housekeeper to clutter the bathroom with an extra roll as the one in use approaches exhaustion, or a guest be embarrassed by the lack of a spare roll.

These and other objects and advantages are secured by this invention which may be more fully described in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the dispenser;

FIG. 2 is a vertical section therethrough;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary view, partly in section and partly in elevation, showing a small portion, on a larger scale, of one form of cover for the dispenser;

FIG. 4 is a similar view of a modified form of cover;

FIG. 5 is a plan view of a paper roll separate from the container; and

FIG. 6 is a view similar to FIG. 2 of a modified form of holder.

Referring first to FIG. 5, 2 designates a roll of toilet paper of usual form having a hollow center 3, but without the usual core. At its periphery is a stiffening wrapper 4 which may be formed by applying adhesive, or an adhesive and sizing to the last outer two or three convolutions of the roll.

The dispenser comprises a hollow cylinder 5 of an internal diameter large enough to receive a coil of paper, and deep enough to receive a stack of two or preferably three of the rolls placed end on end, with the top end of the top roll close to the top of the holder. The cylinder has a closed bottom 6 and a quick-removable cover Patented Sept. 29, 1964 7. The cover may be friction-fitted to the top of the cylinder, but is preferably screwed on with a thread requiring little more than a turn.

The cylinder may be formed of plastic, plain sheet metal or ornamented or colored sheet metal, or metal covered with thin plastic. It may even be formed of cardboard or thin fiberboard of a type often used in making waste baskets. Fiber with metal trim around the top and bottom edges is especially suitable, along with a metal bottom.

The cover 7 has a depending skirt 8 that fits about and is preferably threaded, as above explained, the top of the cylinder. It has an inwardly-extending flange 9 of a radial width to extend only a short distance over the top end of the cylinder so that the whole central area of the top of the cylinder is open. The flange preferably has an inward slope and may have radial slots 10 extending toward the rim from its inner edge.

The outer rim of the cover near the edge may have holes punched upwardly through it at about quarter-inch intervals, as best seen in FIG. 3. This forms a succession of tiny burrs 11 that will facilitate the tearing of the paper, as hereinafter more fully described.

As a modification shown in FIG. 4, there may be a narrow annular stripe 12 of rather coarse silvered or gilded abrasive grains adhesively applied to the top of the cover near its outer edge, but inwardly from the periphery. This roughened stripe will facilitate tearing off a length of paper when the paper is pulled against it.

The roughened stripe and the burrs also hold the free or paying end of the paper in frictional contact to maintain this end outside the container; otherwise the free end may slip into the container and out of reach.

The height of the container is conveniently selected to hold a stack of three standard rolls of toilet paper, one upon another, with the end of the top one adjacent the cover. Thus the device is not only a dispenser, but a specialty storage container for a reserve supply, and a height to accommodate three rolls brings the top of the receptacle at about the height of a conventional toilet seat above the floor. The three rolls of paper are indicated at A in FIG. 1.

Paper is drawn from the center of the top roll through the open central area of the cover. A length may be severed by drawing it over the abrasive or burrs on the rim of the cover with a quick jerk, or some may find it more convenient to simply hold the paper and tear it at the desired place.

As the roll is consumed, the slots 10 will reveal the amount left. As the outer end of the roll is reached, the remaining convolutions lack the required rigidity to enable the roll to keep its shape, for which reason I prefer to prepare the rolls as above described with a stiffening shell, conveniently formed by gluing a few, two or three, convolutions together. This stiffened part of the roll is of course discarded. When the first roll is consumed, paper may be pulled in like manner from the center of the roll or rolls beneath, but since the bottom roll is so close to floor level, the housekeeper is warned of the need of supplying an additional roll or rolls to the container.

In the modification shown in FIG. 6 the construction of the dispenser is the same as that shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 with the top constructed as shown in either FIGS. 3 or 4, and similar reference numerals have been used to designate the corresponding parts. However, the device here shown is slightly taller, and there is a follower or false bottom 15 under which is a coil spring 16 so that when the top roll is removed, one below will be raised to the top. Preferably only a second roll will be raised in this manner so that when only one remains, the housekeeper will be warned that two are gone.

The portability of the device enhances its utility, since it may be placed out of the reach of small children being trained, and placed at any convenient location. It provides may other advantages and can be attractively designed and colored for the environment in which it is to be used. The roughened strip on the cover is preferably placed inwardly from the very edge so that it will not snag ones clothing or abrade ones skin, should a person happen to brush against the dispenser.

A conventional toilet paper roll is about four and onehalf inches in diameter, and about four and one-half inches high. The dispenser therefore should have an internal diameter which is large enough to easily accept such a roll, but small enough to keep the roll reasonably centered. The length should be just slightly greater than some multiple of four and one-half inches. For three rolls this is about fourteen inches. Paper which is too wide will not pull easily from the center of the roll.

I claim:

A paper dispenser comprising a cylinder of a diameter to receive and hold coaxially therein a roll of paper, a removable cover at the top of the cylinder having a circurnferential skirt attached to the cylinder and depending from an inwardly-directed annular flange of a radius to extend over the end of the roll at only the outermost convolutions thereof, the flange having a roughened surface in a circular zone adjacent the outer periphery of the flange, the central area bounded by the flange inner edge being open, the flange having slots therethrough extending from the central area radially and terminating inwardly from the flange roughened surface, the roll of paper being held within the dispenser to pay out from the roll center and through the central open area of the cover, the free end of the paper fed from the roll being retained on the top of cover by frictional contact with the flange roughened surface.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,671,285 Hanna May 29, 1928 2,373,092 Avery Apr. 10, 1945 2,552,594 Scott May 15, 1951 2,639,873 Smith May 26, 1953 2,864,495 Ritchie Dec. 16, 1958 2,879,122 Maves Mar. 24, 1959 FOREIGN PATENTS 454,555 Great Britain Oct. 1, 1936 450,104 Canada July 27, 1948 325,795 Switzerland Jan. 15, 1958 

